NTX5467

Worst thing about the LT1 Chevy motors is the distributor and plug wire set (harness as they call it). There is a seal that lets oil into the distributor assembly (behind the water pump) and causes problems. It's somewhat expensive to replace (parts price wise) and the plug wires only come in a complete harness (also a little pricey). These don't cause that many problems and are not that hard to replace, but the parts are expensive. Other than that, a real incognito hot rod! All of the Impala SS rear disc brake stuff should bolt right under there too, as should the sway bars and such. Could make a neat car to have luxury and performance and such with.<P>Enjoy!<BR>NTX5467

As with current production stuff, there would be no plain, plated, or painted bolts/nuts in those locations. I highly suspect they should all be the black oxide coating (which has some military spec name with "hours" and "salt spray" in the spec name). Anything down there that was painted or coated was done prior to assembly.<P>A member of a car club showed us once how to duplicate the black oxide coating on regular hardware store bolts using gun bluing. It was neat, but there are particular hardness bolts and such that need to be in suspension applications.<P>I suspect if you dissolve the rust, you'll find the black oxide coating somewhere underneath it all.<P>Enjoy!<BR>NTX5467

Not sure why I came up as "unregistered" above, but it's me.<P>NTX5467

"Killing" the cat might not allow the vehicle to pass an emissions test, so instead of taking it off, you can get aftermarket converters that flow much better than the stock one for not much money and sitll have better performance and pass the emissions test.<P>The extra power that came with the post '87 3.8L V-6 was due to different heads and better targeting of the fuel injectors. Minor things, but they managed to get another 40-45 horsepower from what you've got now, still pass emissions and fuel economy standards, and without supercharging.<P>Post cat exhaust work would be a good move too. Many people "think" they have to have a Flowmaster, but the Walker DynoMax and some others do the same thing. One friend put a Flowmaster on his SSEi Bonneville and hated it for the noise it made (made the car not enjoyable to cruise in) compared to stock, with not much extra power. He put it back more stock and got rid of the noise.<P>There's not going to be any one magic bullet here. If the cold air intake on a LS1 Camaro is worth 15 horsepower, factor that down for your engine size. You don't have a turbo that's air temperature sensative so don't expect massive extra power, yet by unsilencing the air intake, you'll hear more noise than you get power by that mod--but it's a start.<P>Check with <A HREF="http://www.superchips.com" TARGET=_blank>www.superchips.com</A> for a upgrade chip for another 15 horsepower or so. In any event, you'll not get close to the 200 horsepower of the later motors unless you swap in one of those later motors and the computer to make it work.<P>With all of your extra power, you need to put some stiffer struts in the suspension to better handle it. The stock ones are toooo soft for any type of performance issues.<P>You might check out the <A HREF="http://www.gmforums.com" TARGET=_blank>www.gmforums.com</A> site and some of the Grand Prix sites as most of the 3.8L performance goodies available are for the Grand Prix, but will fit other 3.8L applications too in many cases. Plus GMHighTechPerformance magazine.<P>You've got a potential nice car, or it was in its previous life. Enjoy it for what it is and don't butcher it in the progress.<P>Just some thoughts . . .<BR>NTX5467

I was in Borders tonight and found a neat book that could come in handy and answer all kinds of questions.<P>"The Ultimate American V-8 Engine Data Book" covers all American V-8s from about 1949-1975. Power output, vehicles each engine was in, PLUS casting and block identification numbers and casting numbers and similar information on intake manifolds and exhaust manifolds. There's also informaiton on each engine family and such. Much of this information could come in handy for swap meet and salvage yard shopping activities.<P>I did not see any specs on the engine internal items as in the Peterson Publishing Company "Engine Annuals" (starting in 1965), such as cam timing specs or piston weights, so that was a little of a disappointment, but the casting and stamping number information on the blocks and heads can be very valuable information to have--especially for something other than Chevy, Ford, or Chrysler engines.<P>Wanted to pass this along for those who might be interested. Check the book out and see what you think.<P>Enjoy!<BR>NTX5467

I checked the parts database last night at work. It appears I forgot about the special bolt on the earlier covers as opposed to the later special nut to the later ones.<P>The ones with the bolt will have a metal wrench and there are about 7 different color codes. These wrenches are or were available from GM Parts.<P>I highly suspect you'll find the thread to be the previously mentioned common 1/4 x 20 thread. The tire dealers might have an accumulated bunch of keys, as mentioned, but they might be more later model at this point in time. Some wheel cover shops had "master" sets they purchased when the cars were new. <P>Kent-Moore Tools (now SPX) had "special tools" to remove the locks when the key was lost. <P>I discovered the thread specification by accident. When the last generation Caprice came out, there were no wire wheel cover options. Our new car people bought some wire wheel covers from a wheel cover vendor, which dressed up the cars quite a bit.<P>A customer came in wanting a wrench to get the wheel covers off. Upon examination, I found a regular bolt holding it on instead of the special bolt. It was a common 1/4 x 20 bolt about 1" long. With that deal, you just need a cheap deep socket and a ratchet instead of worrying about a special wrench that could get lost. An inexpensive solution to a possible somewhat tense future situation.<P>The wheel covers still have the clips along the outer edge just as they always did, but the center lock bolt/nut would be the default method of retention. So, it would be a good idea to have those in place. Plus, without the center bolt/nut in place, the stamped cone they attach to can rattle as the wheel turns.<P>Enjoy!<BR>NTX5467

I doubt your wash had anything to do with that situation. I concur that the timing is terrible for that to happen, but at least you were close to home instead of on a trip to show it off or something.<P>On the bright side, now you have a reason (though not planned by any means) to make sure the heads and valve seals are both in good condition. If one head gasket was marginal and failed, the other one might not be far behind. Hopefully, it's not a cracked head. It might also be a good time to replace the timing chain as they used to "jump" about the 80,000 mile mark on some of those older V-8s.<P>Any further engine things you do now will be "insurance" for not having to do them later. While it's static, you can also let it know you still like it by waxing and detailing it plus other little things that will make it look better (without much monetary outlay) whether it's running or being parked.<P>Timing can be everything and sometimes it's terrible.<P>NTX5467

If it's a plastic wrench that removes a nut from a stud under the pop off center cap, then color code of the nut is necessary and they should be available from GM Parts. The wrench should be about 3/4" in outside diameter and plastic and would remove a large nut with particular lobes (flat spots) on it's circumference to index with the wrench, plus a reasonably large handle to grab on to. A one piece plastic item.<P>If the nut on the stud is smaller, completely round with notches in it, that lock is probably from McGard or another aftermarket vendor. Could even be an accessory lock kit from GM from when the vehicle was new. If the locks were "production", there should be a small piece of paper in the owner's manual papers, about 3" wide and about 5-6" long with a code number on the top and a 1-800 number to call to get another wrench. This gets you the exact same wrench you had, but there's no guarantee those locks might not have been changed somewhere along the line.<P>If the nut is the round one with notches spaced around the outer edge, the wrench will be a two piece metal affair, a cross bar and the shank that has the "key" end on it. These wrenches are only available from the respective vendor and NOT GM Parts. Hence, the phone number and code.<P>I don't recall specifically which lock type your vehicle might have, but I've mentioned the two different types of locks GM has used over the years for factory installations.<P>If by chance you can get the lock nuts off, you might find the thread is 1/4-20 so you can put a regular nut and washer on there and fix up a small ratchet and socket to take them off. If the "people" are interested in those wheel covers, they'll probably get them anyway, but they might not be expecting to need a regular socket to get them off either.<P>Key thing is to determine which type of locks you have on the vehicle--which will determine where the wrench will need to come from.<P>NTX5467

One diagnostic move might be to put tubes in the tires that loose air consistently to see if it stops. <P>Not being familiar with those particular wheels, are they rated for tubeless tires? Just curious . . . <P>If the rims were clean and such when the tires were installed, air loss there from wheel flex should not usually happen, but loose or not screwed-in far enough valve cores might be the culprit.<P>Worst case scenario might be to take the wheels off, clean them, and get them magnafluxed.<P>Just some additional thoughts.<BR>NTX5467

I concur with 70Electra, the numbers generated from these "services" are certainly not absolute numbers, but can give you a general guide only. Their dialogue starts out credibly enough with mention of the state DMV databases, but when they mention their computer extrapolation for scrappage and such, that's when the credibility tends to go out of the window for me.<P>The word "rare" is totally subjective too. For example, in the early 1980s, I saw 12 different Unibody Ford pickups in my various runnings around in the DFW area, along with other low production '70s era muscle cars. Those pickups were still running, driving vehicles and would show up in the DMV database for sure. But you would not see the same concentration of these vehicles in another locality. Rare? Yes, but not everywhere. <P>Just like any Buick being a rare car in the non-metro areas of West Texas, but not in Dallas or other large metro areas.<P>I understand that there are a lot of Buick owners that are not in the BCA, but I'd look at the number of vehicles like yours that are listed in the members' vehicle section of the current and recent BCA rosters to get a better idea of how many might still exist. How many are "in the club" can be much more important than how many are still in existence "whereever".<P>In any event, you might never get a firm number, just an approximation. Rarity and value are in the eye of the beholder. Get the vehicle appraised by a credible appraiser (who usually aims "high"), check the prices in "Old Cars Price Guide", get insurance of your choice, and don't worry about the "numbers".<P>Just some thoughts . . .<P>NTX5467

My '68 LeSabre had a similar problem. It was highly intermittent too. The engine would just "die away" but I could sometimes catch it by pumping the throttle. Start times would be extended too, until it finally fired off--sometimes longer times than others. Sometimes, it ran ok, other times it took multiple times to get it to stay running.<P>There might be fuel in your inline filter, but if it isn't being pumped, it's just sitting there.<P>When I put on a new fuel pump, the engine sounded better than it ever had. I suspect the problem plagued the previous owner as the fuel line was sliced near the carb (like where a pressure gauge might be inserted).<P>It could be a chaffed wire or similar, but don't automatically rule out the fuel pump performance (flow, pressure, and volume)either.<P>Just some thoughts . . .<P>NTX5467

While the "ideal" way would be to replace the drums as a set, that's not always necessary. In theory, the larger drum would have a larger "lever arm" for the shoes to work against (with greater braking force) but I rather doubt the extra .040" would really be significant. What would be is the friction surface characteristics of the two drums. But with some careful applications to burnish the friction surfaces and shoes in after installation, that issue should be minimized too.<P>New drums, due to their being warehoused vertically or dropped somewhere along the line, sometimes are not completely round and can cause a pulsation. Then they have to be cut to be completely round again. So you again end up with having drums that are not exact matches in internal diameter side to side. My suggestion on new drums with a pulsation would be to put some miles on them like that to season then before cutting them to get rid of the pulsation. Just like using a seasoned engine block for a rebuild versus a green, new block. <P>Having mentioned these things, it might be best to try to use your existing drums provided you don't exceed the Max Dia. spec cast into the drum on its outer surface and make sure both the friction surfaces are of the same quality.<P>To expedite the adjustment process, you can get one of those inside/outside brake size tools to do the initial setup. Much easier and quicker. From there, the self adjusters should pickup up the rest of the situation.<P>The initial bleeding can be done at the wheel with one of the hand vacuum pump kits. This way, you pull the fluid through the system at each wheel (and can do it by yourself). Initially, the factory pulls a vacuum on the system at the master cylinder before the fluid goes in. Make sure you don't run the master cylinder dry in the process too.<P>Just some thoughts . . .<P>NTX5467

Mr. Wade did not elaborate on which construction was used on the wheels he said he'd seen the rims split on, just that they were on earlier, non-radial wheels. I suspect he meant "earlier" to mean pre-60s.<P>Up until that point, I hadn't heard of that problem and that's the only place I've heard of it. But he's seen more of those things than I have. I mentioned it for information purposes in case someone might have some mysterious air loss issue.<P>On the Chrysler wheel that I had the rotation problem with, ther were two cast "bumps", one on each side of the valve stem, obviously there to prevent the wheel cover from rotating. Plus corresponding tabs on the cover itself. These tabs on the cover and the wheel, even when the tabs on the cover were bent to have a better stop, were ineffective in proventing that problem with that wheel/cover interface. It was only on that one wheel too.<P>That's when I figured out the best thing was to remove the valve stem extension and reposition the cover with the valve stem hole away from the valve stem. It looks a little different that way (with no valve stem in the hole), but better than a flat tire.<P>Just my experiences.<BR>NTX5467

I concur that "Holiday" was the nomenclature for an Oldsmobile hardtop vehicle.<P>As for the '68 Skylark, it could be it was a special edition that was put together by a particular dealer group for a sales promotion of sorts. Those things usually were particular equipment packages and such for a specific sales event and could have included non-stock (for that year) GM paint combinations. Several possibilities there. How does the VIN decode?<P>The Dallas Bold Men of Olds dealer group cut a deal in the early '70s where they got Olds to build them a Cutlass "S" coupe with the upscale Supreme front fenders and grilles. We never knew of them to exist anywhere else but down here. The VIN said "Cutlass S Coupe" but the body said "Cutlass Supreme" although the badging was for a base Cutlass with no "Supreme" nameplates. Caused some problems for unsuspecting body shop and parts guys who didn't know what the deal was. The dealer group did that deal successfully for several years.<P>Enjoy!<BR>NTX5467

A carb rebuild kit will not affect the existing calibration of the carb, just the gaskets, needle and seats, accel pump, and such that you need to put it back together when you take it apart.<P>The 800cfm Q-Jets have a 1.50" primary throttle bore instead of the 1.375" throttle bore of the regular ones--a visible difference. All Q-Jets have 2.25" secondaries, but the air valves on the newer versions will not open all of the way so the air flow total is restricted to more like 650cfm.<P>Enjoy!<BR>NTX5467

HEI appeared in spring production vehicles in 1974 becoming standard on all GM V-8s in 1975 as part of the catalytic converter enhanced emission system stuff, just as radials were standard that same year too for better fuel economy.<P>There are listings out there, even if it's the basic production AC-Delco items. I usually look for Borg-Warner Cool Wire spiral core wire sets, pre-terminated and ready to install. The first set I put on was on my '77 Camaro V-8. At that time, they looked just like the factory HEI wires except the boots were about twice the size--same color and everything, but later versions have changed a little. Down here, Pep Boys carries them and the price is competitive with stock wire sets, but they have the spiral core guts like the "high performance" brands that cost more.<P>Enjoy!<BR>NTX5467

I checked the part numbers on the control arms and bushings in the "'75 and prior" GM parts book at work. The arms (upper and lower) appear to be the same for the big cars from '65-'72 and also are the same number for the similar Skylarks. The control arm bushings are basically one part number for the above A and B body Buick applications.<P>When I checked in my Chilton Crash Manual which has the earlier models, 1964 had different control arm part numbers than 1965.<P>Sorry for the indiscretion on the PST site link.<P>Good luck on your search.<BR>NTX5467

Stainless sleeves might look nice, but there's already a steel sleeve under the rubber in the valve stem (to hold the valve stem insert mechanism).<P>Wallace Wade, a vintage vehicle tire dealer in Dallas, advises against using radial tires on wheeels for which they were not designed. He claims to have seen them split from the different stresses that radials put on the wheel. Personally, I've known people who used radials on vehicles of earlier vintages without any problems. I know that many HD truck wheels used to be spec'd for radials or non-radials in earlier years.<P>Easiest way out for me was to just reposition the wheel cover on the wheel and then remove the wheel cover to check/add air. Some wheels just seem to be more prone to flex than others, especially under cornering situations.<P>Enjoy!<BR>NTX5467

Those shipping weights only include about 1/4 tank of fuel too. Gas weighs something like 6lbs/gallon. Sometimes, I suspect, those weights were for the base model instead of the fancier models with more equipment and insulation. If you're paying to ship by weight, you want to admit to the lightest weight you can.<P>Another source could be magazine road tests where the shipping and actual weights of the road test vehicles are listed. You might have to check on similar vehicles of a different year on those respective body styles, but there might be something somewhere.<P>Enjoy!<BR>NTX5467

Most of those sensors screw into the radiator tank and others might clip into the tank (I believe there'll be an external hex on the outside of the sensor if it screws in). The typical method of sealing is with an o-ring on the sensor. The sensor can only work off of continuity of a particular circuit, if I understand those things correctly. <P>If you go to the trouble of removing it, you might as well get a new one to replace it with. That way, you save doing some work twice and save some time in the process. <P>Hopefully, you put in a new DexCool mixture of coolant at the correct concentration.<P>If the sensor is working correctly, it could be a malfunction of the instrument cluster itself. Could also be a problem in that particular circuit of the wiring harness. If you unplug the harness at the sensor and connect the two unplugged terminals in the harness, will the light go out?<P>If you change the sensor or remove it, be sure to drain the cooling system to the appropriate level before hand.<P>Just some thoughts on that deal . . .<P>NTX5467

I highly suspect they can only track current registrations of vehicles. Some owners might have lapsed in their liscensing their vehicles for one reason or another. It might be better to consider these lists as of "street legal" vehicles instead of the total population of particular vehicles. Have you looked in the recent BCA Roster and previous issues to check on how many are in the club and where?<P>Enjoy!<BR>NTX5467

Considering it's a white car, is it possible it might have been a "Select 60" car? Just curious. Have you made the acquaintance of Barney Eaton in the Georgetown area?<P>Enjoy!<BR>NTX5467

Radiator shop prices for recores can vary somewhat from area to area. They all have basically the same sources for cores so that part's pretty constant, but their profit margins can vary. <P>From prior experiences, I always buy new if I can get one (typically Modine or Delco) as they are both OEM suppliers. There apparently are differences in solders used to attach the tanks to the core as one 2nd generation radiator shop I use for recores uses solder that lasts and stays hooked whereas recores/clean-outs I used to get done more locally usually seeped inside of about 2 years.<P>I suspect from the other comments that the price for the recore is ball park. The fuel tank price seems appropriate also, just make sure all of the rust and grunge is completely gone from the tank.<P>Enjoy!<BR>NTX5467

Having the complete set of parts books (of appropriate printing date with respect to the year of the vehicle) and the appropriate year GM service manual can certainly be invaluable in many cases. Many things changed between the different Buick models than you would ever suspect--many of these little things I've seen in comparing salvage yard Buicks between LeSabres and Wildcats and Electras, for example.<P>One other parts book to look for now that swap meet season is upon us, is the AC-Delco "Illustrated Parts Manual" for things like air conditioning, electrical, and shock absorbers. If you find the same thing in another vendor's brand (i.e., Monroe shocks, Moog suspension, Standard Ignition) it can also be good. These illustrated parts books typically had pictures and GM part numbers with basic applications for the individual parts, plus the vendor's part number. In the back usually were specs on those parts too. If you're trying to really pin something down that isn't in the GM books, these types of books can really come in handy. There's a great one for AC-Delco Emission controls for the later vehicles too.<P>For engine-related parts, finding an older Dana/Perfect Circle engine parts book can really be great. Everything is listed by engine manufacturer, size, and year of manufacture. It's real easy to see what years and such various parts fit by following the progression of model years and such. In many cases, the casting numbers of pistons, rods, and crankshafts are also listed. Lots of great information in those!<P>Something else to consider if you can't always get the GM books as such. Plus, if a particular part fits another GM vehicle, it'll be listed there too. If you could find an old auto supply parts book rack, you can really have some fun!<P>Enjoy!<BR>NTX5467

Thanks Alan. It's certainly one of the most unique "modified" stock Buicks ever built. <P>NTX5467